Dispenser for toilet tissue rolls



Nov. 28, 1961 v. c. JONES ETAL 3,0

DISPENSER FOR TOILET TISSUE ROLLS Filed Aug. 19, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig.1

Nov. 28, 1961 v. c. JONES EI'AL DISPENSER FOR TOILET TISSUE ROLLS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 19, 1958 United States Patent 3,010,670 DISPENSER FOR TOILET TISSUE ROLLS Vincent C. Jones and William S. Huss, Appleton, and

Archie S. Krueger, Green Bay, Wis., assignors to American Can Company, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Aug. 19, 1958, Ser. No. 756,017 Claims. (Cl. 242--55.3)

This invention relates to a dispenser for retaining two rolls of toilet tissue, one of which is available for use while the other one is stored in the dispenser in reserve and can be made available for use only when the first is exhausted. The dispenser is adapted to be mounted for use on a wall or partition and can be opened for refilling with fresh tissue rolls.

The dispenser comprises a base which carries a semicylindrical housing hinged to the base. The housing is provided with a removable mandrel which carries two axially aligned toilet tissue rolls. One of the rolls, which is the reserve roll, is enclosed by a slidable cover so that the roll is not accessible for use until the other roll is exhausted. The cover is axially slidable in the housing only when the roll in use is completely exhausted.

Further details of construction and advantages of the dispenser will be apparent from the following specification and accompanying drawings wherein,

FIGURE 1 is a front elevational view of the dispenser showing the cover in its right-hand position enclosing a reserve toilet tissue roll while the toilet tissue in the left side of the dispenser is in use,

FIGURE 2 is a view similar to FIGURE 1, the lefthand toilet tissue roll being exhausted and the empty core of same being left on the mandrel,

FIGURE 3 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 showing the slidable cover moved to the left side of the dispenser to expose the reserve toilet tissue roll,

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken on lines 44 of FIGURE 2,

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken on lines 5-5 of FIGURE 2,

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view taken on lines 66 of FIGURE 1,

FIGURE '7 is a sectional view taken on lines 77 of FIGURE 3,

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view of the dispenser having the mandrel removed therefrom, and

FIGURE 9 is a perspective view of the mandrel used for supporting the two toilet tissue rolls.

Referring to the drawings, the dispenser comprises a base 19 to which is hinged a semi-cylindrical housing on hinges 13, as shown in FIGURES 4 and 8. The base is provided with a stiffening channel 11 along one margin thereof, as shown in FIGURE 4, and with openings a, as shown in FIGURE 6, for permitting screws to pass therethrough for attaching the dispenser to a wall or other 3,010,670 Patented Nov. 28, 1961 lower margin 22 of strip 20 is bent inwardly of the housing, as shown in FIGURE 4, to form a guide lip for a purpose to be described later. A metal strip 18 of a length substantially equal to the length of the upper margin of the rear wall 5 is affixed to the inner face of the rear wall adjacent the upper margin thereof by means of spaced rivets 119, as shown in FIGURE 4. The metal strip 18 is shaped to form a track member, U-shaped in cross-section, extending adjacent the upper margin of rear wall 5, as shown in FIGURES 4 and 8, for the full length thereof.

Bearing plates 25 are provided adjacent the inner face of each end wall 6, as shown in FIGURE 6. The bearing plates 25 are spaced inwardly of the casing a short distance away from end walls 6 and are retained on the end walls by means of marginal portions 26, integral with plates 25, which are supported on the end walls 6 and are suitably attached thereto as by spot welding. The bearing plates 25 are provided with open-ended U-shaped slots for slidably receiving therein the end of a mandrel 50, shown in FIGURE 9. The mandrel is substantially round in cross-section and is shaped so as to have two opposed flat sides a. A ridge or stop portion 51 extends at the medial portion of the mandrel which serves to limit the inward axial movement of toilet tissue rolls positioned on the mandrel. The U-shaped channels 24 in bearing plates 25 are dimensioned so as to engage the flat sides 50a of the mandrel and thereby prevent rotation thereof. The cross-sectional contour of the mandrel however is dimensioned so as to slidably receive the inner core 60 of toilet tissue rolls and also to permit the core to freely rotate thereon when lengths of toilet tissue are removed from the toilet tissue roll 2.

A semi-cylindrical cover '40 is provided of such dimensions so as to enclose one-half of the casing within which a reserve toilet tissue roll 3 is enclosed. The cover 40 is provided with a finger opening 41 to facilitate grasping same for moving it from the right-hand position, shown in FIGURE 1, to the left-hand position, shown in FIGURE 3. The cover 40 is provided at its inner or left side with a wall or partition 30 which extends within the casing short of the base 10 and is attached to the inwardly bent marginal portions 40c of the cover, as shown in FIGURE 8, by spot welding. The other end of cover 40 is open, but when it is positioned, as shown in FIGURE 1, the right-hand end wall 6 serves to completely close the space beneath the cover 40 in which a reserve toilet tissue roll 3 is enclosed.

The rear marginal portion 40b of cover 40 is shaped into U-channel form which is adapted to embrace track member 18 and slide thereon axially of the casing, as

' shown in FIGURE 5. The front marginal portion 40a support. The housing is formed of identical end walls 6 7 having inwardly rounded margins 6a joined to front wall 4 and inclined rear wall 5. The front wall 4 extends upwardly about half the height of the housing so as to leave a rectangular opening at the top of the housing, as shown in FIGURE 8, defined by the upper margins of the front and rear walls. A metal strip 20 of a length substantially equal to the length of the upper margin of the front wall is attached to the inner face of the front wall adjacent the upper margin thereof by spaced rivets 23, as shown in FIGURE 4. The upper margin 21 of strip 20 is bent outwardly so as to engage and overlap the upper margin of front wall 4 and is also shaped to form a track member, U-shaped in cross-section, extending adjacent the upper margin of front wall '4, for the full length thereof, as shown in FIGURES 4 and 8. The

of cover 40 is also shaped into U-channel form which is adapted to embrace track member 21 and slide thereon axially of the casing, as shown in FIGURE 5. The partition or side wall 30 of cover 40 is strengthened by means of integrally shaped ribs 31 and 32 extending lengthwise thereof. The wall 30 is provided with an open-ended slot 33 of suitable dimensions so as to permit the mandrel 50 to extend through the slot but not to slide over toilet tissue roll 2 in the left side of the dispenser. However, after roll 2 is completely exhausted so as to leave the inner core 60 thereof exposed while retained on mandrel 50, the slot 33 is of such dimensions as to permit cover 40 and its partition 30 to slide over the empty core 60 to the extreme left-hand position, shown in FIGURE 3, whereby reserve toilet tissue roll 3 is exposed and made available for use.

Partition 30 is provided with a finger tip 34 which is adapted to ride freely in the channel space formed by guide lip 22, previously described, extending below the upper margin of front wall 4, as shown in FIGURE 5.

When the toilet tissue roll 2 is exhausted, cover 40 is' manually moved from the position shown in FIGURE 1 to the position shown in FIGURE 2 and is retained in the latter position against the retractive tension of spring 35 by means of spaced leaf springs 17 provided in base 10. Leaf springs 17 are fixedly attached at one end thereof to the base by rivets 17a, as shown in FIGURE 2. Retaining plates integral with the base 10 serve to limit the outward movement of the free end 17b of the leaf springs, as shown in FIGURES 2 and 6. The free ends 17b of the leaf springs 17 are bent toward base 10, as shown in FIGURE 6. When the cover 40 is moved to its extreme left-hand position, as shown in FIGURE 3, the lower free end portions of the partition 30, terminating at the lower ends 31a and 31b, respectively, of ribs 31 and 32, will ride past the ends 17b of leaf springs 17 and will abut against same, whereby the partition 30 will be retained in locked position against the ends 17 b of the leaf springs '17. The cover 40 therefore cannot be moved back to its previous right-hand position in the casing.

In order to move the cover back to its right-hand position it is necessary to hinge open the housing on its hinges 13. The housing is normally retained in locked position by means of a lock 65 which can be suitably released as by a key when it is desired to hinge the cover 40 to open position.

The base 10 is also provided with retaining flanges 12 of suitable length and integral therewith, adjacent each end wall 6, which extend inwardly of the casing. The inner ends 12a of the flanges 12 terminate short of the ends of the mandrel 50 and serve to retain the mandrel within the slots 33 in bearing plates 25.

In using the dispenser construction, the semi-cylindrical housing is hinged to its open position. Cover 40 will automatically be retracted to its right-hand position due to the action of spring 35. .Toile't tissue rolls 2 and 3 are positioned on mandrel 50 from each end thereof while it is removed from the casing. The mandrel is then positioned in the housing by aligning the fiat sides 50a thereof with the slots 24 in the bearing plates 25. The base 10 is then locked into closed position and is retained by lock 65. Toilet tissue roll 2 is now exposed and is available for use until it is exhausted. The cover 40 will enclose the reserve roll 3 which is not accessible as long as roll 2 is in use. When roll 2 is completely exhausted its core 60 will be left on mandrel 50, as shown in FIGURE 2. Cover 40 can now be moved to the lefthand position shown in FIGURE 3 and will be retained and locked in this position by action of leaf springs 17. The reserve roll 3 will now be exposed andavailable for use. p

In order to refill'the dispenser with a reserve roll the service man merely hinges open the housing 5 and removes the mandrel 50 from the housing. Empty core 60 is removed and a new tissue roll is positioned, in its place. The mandrel is then reversed so that the new roll is positioned within the cover 40 while the incompletely used roll is positioned on the other end of the mandrel 50. The housing is then closed and locked, as previously explained, so that the incompletely used toilet tissue roll is exposed and is available for use. When it is completely exhausted, cover 40 can be moved again manually to the left-hand position, as shown in FIGURE, 3 to permit access and use of the reserve toilet tissue roll enclosed by cover 40.

It is to be understood that many modifications may be made in the described specific details of the elements constituting the dispenser construction which have the same functional purpose and such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A dispenser for a pair of rolls of toilet tissue wound on tubular cores to permit use of one roll at a time which comprises a base, a substantially semi-cylindrical housing carried by said base and hinged thereto, said housing having a diameter and axial length for retaining two axially aligned rolls of toilet tissue, said housing being formed of a front wall, rear wall and end walls, a single removable mandrel of a length substantially equal to the axial length of said housing and having the ends thereof supported in said housing adapted to slidably receive and rotatably support the inner cores of said aligned toilet tissue rolls, a'semi-cylindrical slidable cover retained in said housing, said cover having a diameter and axial length to enclose the first of said toilet tissue rolls while the second toilet tissue roll is exposed and available for use, said cover having a portion thereof operatively engageable with said second tissue roll to prevent axial movement of the cover except upon exhaustion of said second toilet tissue roll thereby to uncover the first toilet tissue roll enclosed by said cover for permitting use of same, and means for releasably locking the cover in its moved position. I

2. A dispenser for a pair of rolls of toilet tissue wound on tubular cores to permit use of one roll at a time as defined in claim 1, wherein open-ended slotted bearings are provided on the end walls of the housing for receiving and retaining the ends of the removable mandrel, and means for retaining the ends of the mandrel in said slotted bearings.

3. A dispenser for a pair of rolls of toilet tissue Wound on tubular cores to permit use of one roll at a time as defined in claim 1, wherein a spring is attached to the slidable cover to normally urge the cover to a position adjacent one of the side walls of said housing, spaced guide means in said housing for slidably guiding said cover toward the second end wall of said housing, and means to releasably retain the cover in its moved position adjacent said second side wall of said housing.

4. A dispenser for a pair of rolls of toilet tissue wound on tubular cores to permit use of one roll at a time as defined in claim 1, wherein the mandrel is provided with a medial stop portion for limiting the axial movement of the toilet tissue rolls supported on said mandrel.

5. A dispenser for a pair of rolls of toilet tissue wound on tubular cores to permit use of one roll at a time as defined in claim 1, wherein the slidable cover is formed of a semi-cylindrical body portion and a side wall integral with said body portion, said side wall being provided with an aperture to permit the mandrelto freely pass therethrough but of insufficient size to permit the second toilet roll to pass therethrough but of sufiicient size to permit the exhausted core of the second toilet roll to pass therethrough.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

